Before the second coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ, there will be a comprehensive restoration of the church (Acts 3:21). The Holy Spirit will restore the church into its original condition as when the church was born at the Day of Pentecost more than 2000 years ago (Acts 2:1-47). The purpose of the church restoration is to present the church holy and blameless before Christ, as the bride who is ready to meet the bridegroom.

“To present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless” (Ephesians 5:27)

“May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones” (1 Thessalonians 3:13).

With the mighty power of the Holy Spirit God will restore His church. God will pour out His Holy Spirit extraordinary abundant, greater than the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13). This outpouring will be called as “the later rain” which magnitude is the combination of “the early rain with the later rain” (Joel 2:23-24). The mighty power of the Holy Spirit will restore the church overall into its original condition.

What was the church original condition? What were the characteristics of the early church when the church was born of the Holy Spirit?

As it was written in the book of Acts 2:41-47 and 4:32-35, there were at least 6 characteristics of the early church:

1.Fruitful: the church won the great number of souls for Christ.

2.Hunger and thirst for the word of God: they devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching.

3.They always wanted to have fellowship with God and with other believers

4.There were manifestations of the power of the Holy Spirit: many miracles and wonders happened that made people amazed and glorified God.

5.There was “brotherly love” among the believers that made the church in one accord, helping each other with sincere hearts and full of joy.

6.The church was enjoying the favor of all the people and attracted the people to join them.

Now, what is the present condition of the modern church that makes God must thoroughly restore His church?

The present condition of the modern church is described by the Lord rebuke to the church of Laodicea as written in Revelation 3:14-17:

1.The church’s deeds are not clear in God’s view: neither cold nor hot, but lukewarm that makes God about to spit the church out of His mouth.

2.The modern church is materially rich and enriching themselves.

3.The modern church is spiritually wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

4.The church’s faith is impure, mixed with man self-confidence. The church relies more in its own power, so there is no manifestation of the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit anymore.

5.The holiness of the church is fading: the church is becoming compromise with sins and worldliness for the sake of pleasing people’s heart.

6.The church is lack of revelation that makes the church blinds and could not understand the will of God. The church relies more in human wisdom rather than God’s wisdom.

What would God restore upon the church in order to prepare her for the second coming of Christ that the Church will be holy, blameless and ready to meet Christ?

First: God wants to restore “the first love” of the church.

“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far (deep) you have fallen!” (Revelation 2:4-5)

What is “the first love” of the church? This is the love that the believers have when they first believe and accept Christ: the love that burns inside someone who just had been saved. It is not an ordinary love, which is owned by the church nowadays. This is a special and extraordinary love like the love of someone who is falling in love.

The first love of the church is the love that drives believers to do special and extraordinary things for the Lord; not just a routine, ordinary and only what is available. This is the love that encourages believers to sacrifice themselves for the Lord, to “deny themselves and take their cross to follow the Lord” (Mark 8:34), even to suffer persecution for their faith; not just want to enjoy comfortable life. This is the love that makes believers willing to live a holy life and present themselves as chaste virgin to Christ until His coming, and not a careless life. This is the love that makes believers sensitive to the presence of the Lord, and makes them always thirst and hunger for the Lord, to have intimate fellowship with Him. This is the love that makes believers always want to tell people about the goodness of Christ.

The lost of the first love is a very deep downfall of the church. This would make the Lord very disappointed. The Lord wants that the church keeps falling in love with Him until the day He came to pick up the church. Only the believers who keep his love burning for the Lord would be ready for that great day. The rest would find themselves have no confidence and shame before Him at his coming (1 John 2:28).

Why then the church lost her first love? It’s because the church loves the world besides Christ. The church has an affair with the world.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them” (1 John 2:15).

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other” (Matthew 6:24).

Today the church is still saying they love the Lord, but at the same time they love the world and everything in it that can satisfy their flesh desires. They show their love to Christ just by attending the church meeting regularly and involve in some church’s ministries. But they actually have lost their first love. Their love for Jesus is no longer burning but fading and dimmed. Their words of love are just from their lips and not from the depths of their hearts.

“These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts is far from Me” (Matthew 15:8)

Second, God wants to restore “the authority” of the church:

Church authority is the right given to the church to act and use the power of God in Jesus name (Luke 10:17) such as owned by the early church. The spiritual authority had made the early church performed many miracles and wonders in Jesus name (Acts 2:43; 5:12-16).

This was according to the Lord’s promise for the believers that they will drive out demons in His name; they will speak in new tongues; they will place their hands on sick people and heal them in the name of Jesus (Mark 16:17-18). These supernatural signs accompanied the early believers as it was written in the book of Acts. The early church had shown that they had full authority to act and use the power of God in Jesus name (Acts 3:6-7). It had made the early church very effective in spreading the Gospel and winning the soul for God’s Kingdom (Acts 8:5-8).

But why then the modern church today does not show such authority? Is not the power of Jesus Christ still the same today as in the past? (Hebrews 13:8). The power of God never changes, but the church has lost its authority to use it. Why?

1.Because the church doesn’t believe anymore in miraculous power of Jesus name. The church more believes in science, technology and human wisdom. The church does not exercise their spiritual authority anymore. Their faith in the power of God has dimmed. “And he (Jesus) did not do many miracles because of their lack of faith” (Matthew 13:58).

2.Because the church does not carry out their duties: preaching the Gospel as commanded in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).

“Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it” (Mark 16:20).

3.Because the church doesn’t live in submission. There are rebellions within the churches today. The believers rebel against their true spiritual authority (Hebrews 13:17). The true spiritual leaders are those who lead the church with pure heart and motivation, and according to the Bible principles, and live a holy life. When they rebel against their true spiritual leader actually they rebel against God. This has made the church lost her authority to act and use the power of God in Jesus name. “Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

4.Because the church doesn’t live in holiness. This has made the Lord revoke the authority of the church. “How can a sinner perform such signs?” and “We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will” (John 9:16, 20).

The third is the restoration of “faith, holiness and revelation”:

“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see” (Revelation 3:18).

God will restore the faith of his church. “Gold refined in fire” speaks about “genuine faith” that makes the church spiritually rich. The church today is busy to make them materially rich. They are enriching themselves by collecting more money from the people. The churches are competing to build stately building to become “mega church.” Modern church has abandoned the genuine faith. That has made the church spiritually poor though they are materially rich.

Without genuine faith the church cannot please God’s heart. What they call as faith now actually is just man’s self-confidence because they are materially rich and successful; they have strong organization with excellent management system; they make an effective publication and sermons that preferably the crowd. Their leaders are as famous as celebrities. But in God sight they are spiritually wretched and poor. Their faith is just for their regular service and ministry but not to do mighty works, as God wants.

“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).

The Lord Jesus now is in the most high place in heaven, in the right side of God the Father. When he was on earth he had done many great things for the glory of the Father and for the sake of the Kingdom of God. He wants that the church will continue his magnificent work on earth, and even the greater things than what he had done. But the church has failed in translating God’s will. The church builds her own kingdom and glorifies her self. It’s all because the church has lost its genuine faith. The church relies more in her strength and wisdom. God wants to restore the church’s faith to its genuine condition, so when Christ comes to pick up his church, he will find genuine faith on the earth (Luke 18:8).

“Clothes to wear and cover shameful nakedness” speaks about church “holiness.”

“Without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). Without holiness the church will not be able to stand before God. God will not give his power and authority to the church that is not holy. Without holiness the church lost his powerful testimony; the church becomes like the salt that lost its saltiness (Matthew 5:13). Without holiness the church doesn’t become the light of the world (Matthew 6:23), instead the church becomes disgrace and “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles” (Romans 2:24). But when the church back to its holiness, the name of Jesus will be highly glorified, and it will become like a “magnet” that attract people to come and join them.

“Salve to put on your eyes, so you can see” speaks about “the revelation of the Holy Spirit.”

The revelation will enlighten our spiritual eyes to “know the Lord properly”, to see “the riches of glorious inheritance” that God has determined for the church and to see “incomparable great power” for the church that God has given (Ephesians 1:17-20).

Without the revelation of the Holy Spirit the church is spiritually blind. They cannot understand God’s will; they will use the mindset of the unbeliever and conform to the pattern of the world (Romans 12:2). The church does not have the wisdom of God, which is far superior to human’s wisdom. Without God’s wisdom the church cannot give the right and proper solution for the problems in the world.

Whereas if the church has God’s wisdom like Daniel or Joseph the church could become a great blessing for the world. With the revelation of the Holy Spirit there is no mystery to the church; the Holy Spirit could reveal it to the church (1 Corinthians 2:10). By giving the right solution for the world’s problems the authority of the church will be highly lifted up.

“In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and peoples will stream to it” (Micah 4:1).

When the church has the revelation of the Holy Spirit the church will have God’s wisdom and know God’s will. If the church knows God’s will and carries out God’s will the church will become effective instrument in God’s hand.

“Genuine faith, holiness and revelation of the Holy Spirit” are church’s added value in this world that makes the church special and extraordinary. Without it the church is the same as the other religions and beliefs and the church will lose its glory and its role as the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13).

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot” (Matthew 5:13).

The fourth restoration is the restoration of “relationship”: between older and younger generation, among the members in the local church and among the churches in the world as the Body of Christ.

The gap between the older generation and the younger generation has created a lot of discords within the church. The older generation often arrogant because they feel they have more experience and they are better, while the younger generation often rebels because they think that the ways of the older generation are outdated. But if the Holy Spirit touched their hearts both generations will be united because they humble themselves, accept and respect to each other.

There must be reconciliation between the older and younger generations. This is God’s will in order to restore his church before the second coming of Christ. The Holy Spirit will make it happen. There will be harmony in the church. The older generation will guide the younger with God’s wisdom and authority, while the younger generation will become an effective and Spirit anointed doers of God’s plan and purpose with their enthusiasm, quickness and cleverness.

God wants such harmonious cooperation between the older and younger generation to form a synergy for the “acceleration” that God is going to make (Amos 9:13). There is no much time left for the church to complete her duty on earth to fulfill God’s plans and purposes. The younger generation will receive the new anointing that will make them full of God’s power and wisdom. The church will be revitalized through this reconciliation.

“He will turn the heart of the parents (older generation) to their children (younger generation), and the hearts of the children to their parents” (Malachi 4:6).

God also wants to see harmony and unity within the church among its members. Competitions, fights, quarrels and envy create disharmony and divisions among brothers and sisters. This is the stratagem of Satan to hamper and frustrate God’s plan in the church. But when the Holy Spirit moves among God’s people and touches their hearts they will fall upon their knees and humble themselves before God. When the Holy Spirit changes and reunites the spirit of God’s people there will be true unity; there will be sincere reconciliation to forgive and accept each other.

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

God wants his children to live together in unity. It is good and pleasant atmosphere that makes God bestows his blessing (Psalms 133:1-3)

“I appeal to you brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you perfectly united in mind and thought” (1 Corinthians 1:10).

Today, the Body of Christ on earth is divided by organizations, denominations, teachings and things, which do not come from God but from man. Ironically they all claim that it’s all came and originated from God. If it is true then there will be no divisions in the Body of Christ.

But our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Head of the church, which is his Body, wants that the churches to be united (John 17:11). When the Body of Christ is united in one accord then the whole world will know and believe that Christ, the Son of God and God the Father are One, and that God the Father has sent His Son:.

“That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one” (John 17:21-22).

When God has restored all the relationship problems in the church and among the churches then the whole world will come to God and believe in Christ. The unity of the Body of Christ will lift up the church on earth above all religions and beliefs and the world will glorify Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as the Lord of all lords (Philippians 2: 10-11).

One day the Body of Christ will be united. The Holy Spirit will lead the churches. When the same Spirit leads all the churches, they will live in harmony. They will set aside all the things that have made discord among the churches. Organizations and denominations will be just an outward labels, but inwardly the churches own the same spirit, same principles and same teachings: The Gospel of Jesus Christ (Galatians 1:8). The churches will be hand in hand, helping and strengthening to one another, in order to win the world for Christ. This is the prayer of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and one Father of alla, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:3-6).

There is no reason for the churches to be divided. It was just human thoughts and self interests that made the churches discord. But if the same Spirit leads all believers, their thoughts and their interests will be reunited. There are only the mind of Christ and the will of the Father.

The fifth restoration is the restoration of “true worship.”

“After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: that the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, says the Lord, who does all these things” (Acts 15: 16-18).

This prophecy speaks about the restoration of the true worship that pleasing God: the sincere, enthusiastic and joyful worship, which is driven by love and yearning spirit toward God.

This is the worship of those who presents his life totally to God (Romans 12:1). This is the worship of those who worship the Father in spirit and righteousness (John 4:23-24). This is not talking about the style of worship, but the principle of the true worship that pleases God’s heart.

Many churches today are worshiping God ceremonially (Matthew 15:9). They just follow the tradition and the human teaching, but their worship doesn’t come from their sincere hearts that loves Christ and longing for Him; their worship doesn’t come from obedient and submission heart:

“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than fat of rams” (1 Samuel 15:22)

So the Holy Spirit will restore the worship of the church into the worship that pleasing God’s heart. The Holy Spirit will restore even renew the heart of the believers so God can accept and pleasing to them.

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my law” (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

The Holy Spirit before the second coming of Christ will do this comprehensive restoration. The Holy Spirit will restore the church, empower the church, and prettify the church completely that the church may present herself as the bride of Christ: radiant, full of glory and blameless (Ephesians 5:27).

There will be an abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit, which is greater than the outpouring at the Day of Pentecost more than 2000 years ago. There will be an acceleration of the church growing in the world (Amos 9:13) because there is no much time left for the church. There will be a great harvesting of the souls for the Kingdom of God (John 4:35), which is greater than what was happened after the Day of Pentecost when the church won about 3000 souls in one day. Miracles will happen again as the signs that accompany the testimony of the believers. The Gospel will be spread unto the utmost part of the earth (Acts 1:8). The church will reach its most glorious condition (Micah 4:1). Peoples and nations will be won for Christ. After that Christ will pick up his church from the earth (John 14:3), and the earth will enter the period of the Great Tribulation (Revelation 3:10). And after the great tribulation is over Christ will reign as a King on earth with his saints (Revelation 20:4).